Norway refuses place at climate summit because of oil policy – NRK Urix – Foreign news and documentaries

Few have heard of the “High Ambition Coalition” (HAC). But this is an important forum in the international climate negotiations.

It is an informal group of countries that work together to strengthen their efforts and get the best possible result in the climate negotiations. The group will be hired by the Marshall Islands. Different countries can join the declarations that they present, and then a dozen countries are invited to the preliminary ministerial meeting.

Norway has been involved since the HAC was established in 2015, and at several climate summits spoke proudly of the coalition as a driving force in the negotiations. But now it’s over.

– Because Norway has an active oil policy

Climate and Environment Minister Andreas Bjelland Eriksen (Ap) confirms that Norway no longer participates in these meetings, but says that it is still possible for Norway to stand behind the declarations.

– When was the ministry notified of this, and what was stated as the reason?

– At a meeting with the Marshall Islands in March, we were told that we would no longer be invited. The reason given was that Norway is still a significant oil and gas producer and that we have not joined declarations from the coalition since 2021, says Eriksen.

– A clear statement

Norway helped start the HAC in the run-up to the Paris Agreement in 2015, together with the EU and the Marshall Islands.

– At that time there was a broad mobilization of ministers. The coalition has contributed to ambitious goals from the climate summit. It has been, and continues to be, an important voice. The climate and the climate negotiations need it. The fact that Norway is no longer invited to the meeting does not change this, says Eriksen.

The Nature Conservancy and the Norwegian Church Aid are among the organizations that have followed the climate summit closely over many years.

– This is primarily embarrassing and very embarrassing for Norway. Last autumn, we were not allowed to speak at the UN Secretary-General’s climate meeting in New York, and now countries with high climate ambitions do not want us at their meetings anymore, says Matilde Angeltveit, political adviser for climate justice at the Norwegian Church Aid.

The head of the Nature Conservation Association, Truls Gulowsen, believes that the decision to exclude Norway shows that Norwegian oil interests stand in the way of an ambitious climate policy.

– It is good that HAC is so tough, that they are now making a clear settlement with Norway. You cannot stand on stage with the most vulnerable countries and at the same time hand out oil licences. This is a strong signal that the double standard cannot continue, says Gulowsen.

Still an important role

Andreas Bjelland Eriksen is unsigned.

– This is not embarrassing for Norway. We are not on the sidelines. I travel to international meetings with my head held high. Fortunately, Norway has many other areas where we actively participate to make an impact. This does not go beyond the role Norway plays as an active party at the climate summit. We will continue to do that, because we are ambitious internationally and want an ambitious international climate policy.

– Doesn’t this show that Norwegian oil policy is an obstacle to a more ambitious climate policy?

– No, I don’t understand that. We have a petroleum policy that is framed by the close and close climate cooperation with the EU and the countries around us, where we deliver to the European energy system, which is undergoing a major transformation, which agrees well with what we are also trying to do in climate policy. Which is about cutting emissions and creating new jobs.

Unagreed on carbon capture

In recent years, Norway has chosen not to join the declarations from the HAC. The same applies to many other countries, such as Canada and Great Britain.

– We disagree on how the phasing out of fossil fuels should be discussed. Norway, like many other countries, will include carbon capture and storage. In the future there will also be industry that emits CO₂, and carbon capture and storage will then be an important solution. This has also been confirmed by the UN climate panel, says Eriksen.

Negative development

He believes that the High Ambition Coalition, with the Marshall Islands at the forefront, has developed in a negative direction.

– It is a shame to see that the coalition and the leaders of the coalition want to narrow this group down. I think this is the wrong direction to go in. It fragments the voices that collectively want the most ambitious possible climate policy, in line with the Paris Agreement and the 1.5 degree target. I think we need to gather as broad a coalition as possible to manage to implement the climate policy that the world needs.